The University of Georgia has received an $18 million award to advance the study of carbohydrate science, a field of research that donor National Science Foundation says is “under taught in the classroom and understudied at the bench.”
The grant comes out of National Science Foundation’s Biofoundries and will help launch BioFoundry, a glycoscience program which will offer resources, education and training to collaborators and clients through a dedicated user facility to be based at UGA’s Complex Carbohydrate Research center.
Glycans are a basic building block of life. The surfaces of all biological cells have a complex coating of glycans that influence communication with other cells.
But the applications of glycobiology go beyond the medical life sciences. Multiple CCRC researchers study the role of carbohydrates in the production of biofuels, others study how glycans are involved in the production of plant-based new materials.
Researchers working in these areas and more will have access to the BioFoundry user facility, which is intended to be a full-service operation offering services, tools and hands-on training in glycoscience virtually free of charge, provided clients’ goals align with the project’s mission.
To learn more about the CCRC and the future applications of its new grant, visit the Office of Research website.